The Minister for Energy and Green Transition, Dr. John Abdulai Jinapor, has held discussions with the Ghana Upstream Petroleum Chamber on measures to strengthen the country’s upstream petroleum sector and attract increased investment.
The engagement provided an opportunity for the Minister to review developments in the upstream industry since the government assumed office, outline interventions undertaken so far and share government’s plans for revitalising the sector.
Dr. Jinapor said government would continue and deepen reforms aimed at restoring investor confidence and creating a more competitive and predictable environment for upstream petroleum investments.
He identified the reversal of Ghana’s declining oil production as a key priority, while stressing the need to increase domestic gas production to meet growing demand, particularly from the power generation sector.
According to him, government is pursuing a combination of policy, regulatory and infrastructure interventions to achieve these objectives.
He said the ongoing review of Ghana’s upstream legal and regulatory framework was intended, among other things, to improve the competitiveness and attractiveness of the petroleum sector to investors.
Dr. Jinapor further stated that government’s broader objective was to maximise the economic value of Ghana’s oil and gas resources by increasing domestic processing and utilisation.
He noted that expanding domestic gas supply, particularly for power generation, would be critical to strengthening Ghana’s energy security and reducing the country’s dependence on imported natural gas and other energy products.
The meeting also provided an opportunity for the Ghana Upstream Petroleum Chamber to raise concerns affecting industry players and discuss possible measures to address them.
Dr. Jinapor described the engagement as constructive, emphasising the importance of sustained collaboration between government and industry.
He said a strong partnership between the public and private sectors would be essential to building a more competitive, predictable and sustainable upstream petroleum industry capable of contributing significantly to Ghana’s economic development.
Leave a Reply